Disaster Call Center Services

The vendor required to provide call center answering service providers to manage calls related to disaster events, and to maintain year-round readiness through training and quality assurance activities.
- Requirements
•    Utilize redundant, scalable, cloud-based call center technologies with backup that allow services to continue despite challenges with power supply, system surges, server outages, high concurrent call volume, and other call center stressors.
•    The cloud is the ability to host a software platform or service from a remote location that can be freely accessed and used anywhere via internet access. 
•    The cloud shall have built-in geographic resiliency and security (the most recent call center standard must be applied), mitigate the risk of downtime, and protect sensitive data.
•    Backup - robust range of offsite and hybrid cloud-based data protection solutions for backup, retention, and retrieval. 
•    Disaster recovery (DR) as a service - cloud enabled DR solutions to help ensure speed and ease of cloud recovery. 
•    Provide the county a list and describe the redundant, scalable, cloud-based call center technologies contractor currently uses to continue providing services despite system stressors. 
•    A variety of digital resources i.e., computers, phones, faxes, etc. to inform and guide callers. contractor shall submit reports of issues to county staff and requests that require the county government and its emergency response partners to follow up. 
•    Accurately handle calls of various types, including but not limited to, public shelter activities, general public transportation, transportation for people with disabilities or medical needs, evacuation zones and requirements, and damaged structures and infrastructure, etc. 
•    The provided digital resources to accurately refer callers to the appropriate organization when contacted about matters outside the county's jurisdiction, authority, or scope of services. 
•    The county-provided digital resources contractor shall use may include, but are not limited to, knowledge materials, scripts, ticketing and service request systems, scheduling tools, problem submission forms, email, mapping tools (to verify evacuation zone or jurisdiction, for example). 
•    Documentation, such as electronic forms and ticketing systems, shall be descriptive. 
•    The documentation shall be written in third person, accurate, complete, and in clear sentences. 
•    All required questions and answers listed for each event type must be documented in the issue description field of the reporting system. 
•    All call documentation shall be required in english.
•    Contractor shall manage inbound calls in english and Spanish. 
•    Operations shall be at any time deemed necessary by the county. 
•    This may result in continuous operations 24 hours a day, seven (7) days a week, including holidays, and for any length of time, depending on the nature of the disaster event.
•    Contractor shall manage calls in both english and Spanish and provide the related call routing and queueing. 
•    If service in other languages is needed and the contractor can provide it, the county shall give the contractor access to an interpretation service.
•    Contractor shall record and implement up-front and hold messages in both english and Spanish as needed by the county.
•    All messages and menu options are subject to change as needed; the county shall provide pre-recorded files to the contractor or shall provide approved scripts for the contractor to record. 
•    The contractor's recordings shall sound professional, meaning clear and concise communication with clarity in tone and be free of background noise.
•    Contractor shall answer an average of 94 percent of calls presented. 
•    Provide management oversight of call center deliverables to ensure the 94 percent average is needed. it is imperative that all calls be answered in a timely (two (2) to four (4) minutes) manner. 
•    The county recognizes there are reasonable limits to the number of calls that can be answered at one time, and that several factors shall be considered when balancing staffing levels with service levels.
•    Contractor shall have a plan for mitigating data breach and a plan of action in the event one occurs.
•    Contractor shall have security and backup processes to manage and respond to calls as described in these specifications, including high volume scenarios.
•    The call handling software included shall have call queuing and capability to host recorded messages.
•    Call queue shall be able to handle at least 7,500 concurrent calls without callers experiencing fast-busy signals, dropped calls, or other service disruptions.
•    The hold pattern shall be capable of including pre-recorded informational messages as specified by the county.
•    Call hold pattern shall be capable of including audio prompts to indicate approximate wait time or place in queue and shall have the ability to be customized or changed as needed.

- Contract Period/Term: 5 years
- Intent to Bid Due Date: December 9, 2025